Welcome back, and welcome to 2023. We hope the year is not just new, but improved… We’ll be reviewing the Netflix series “Break Point” next week and resuming the mailbags. But this week, with a nod to Nick K. — Columnist and former gubernatorial candidate, Christophe; Not the casually observant tennis player, Kyrgios — let’s start with the New Year’s prediction game. We can revisit in over 11 months and see how we all did. My answers are in bold…
In 2023, Novak Djokovic will…
a. Challenge again for the Grand Slam tournament.
B. Win multiple championships, surpassing Nadal as the all-time leader in the majors.
c. Put the drama of the Covid era behind him and carry on with his commendable work with PTPA.
Dr.. She suffers from fainting, similar to 2017.
Will Iga Swiatek …
a. Continue to play sublime tennis and keep the #1 ranking.
B. Double their output in 2022 and win the Grand Slam.
c. Let the tennis slide, but ramp up its off-court profile with premium NFTs, a production studio, its own cryptocurrency, branded CBD oil and a esports partnership.
Dr.. Win the Australian Open and retire on top.
Carlos Alcaraz will…
a. Keep playing super tennis, keep the first place and win more majors.
B. Battle injuries through a disappointing sophomore retreat campaign.
c. Have a year similar to Swiatek’s 2021 – no majors but lots of progression and deep runs in majors and certifications that will serve him well in the long run.
Dr.. Take a surprise vacation to become captain of the US Davis Cup team.
In 2023, this player will join Federer and Nadal in retirement:
a. Rafael Nadal
B. Venus Williams
c. Britain’s Andy Murray
Dr.. Simona Halep
e. a and b.
F. All of the above
WTA will…
a. Surrender and re-deal with China in the face of financial loss.
B. It ends up moving the year-end event to Saudi Arabia.
c. Address the “quiet quit” issue and find a way to help the many players who should be in their prime years and who instead fail to find happiness and fulfillment and take time off or quit the sport entirely.
Dr.. Actively seeks to combine with/acquire ATP.
Will Peng Shao…
a. Announcing the return of tennis.
B. He left China and became an outspoken opponent of authoritarianism, censorship, and despotism.
c. He continues to insist she’s fine and recant the allegations of sexual assault — her life has changed forever — but don’t appear publicly or on social media.
Dr.. Looking for a public job.
The Laver Cup will…
a. It went on to beat out Davis and United as the most relevant tennis trophy.
B. Keep missing an opportunity by sticking to one gender.
c. The 2023 event was held in Canada, confusing the USTA who had invested $6 million on the expectation that the United States would host the event every two years.
Dr.. All of the above.
The highest-ranked Canadian player, male or female, will be…
a. Bianca Andreescu
B. Lily Fernandez
c. Felix Auger Eliassime
Dr.. Denis Shapovalov
The highest-ranked American player, male or female, will be…
a. Coco Jove
B. Madison Keys
c. Sloane Stephens
Dr.. Jesse Pegula
e. to mention
He would be the highest-ranking American man…
a. John Eisner
B. Taylor Fritz, again
c. Francis Tiafoe
Dr.. Riley Opelka
e. Sebastian Korda
F. else
The ATP player who wins his first major will be…
a. Casper Road
B. Steve Tsitsipas
c. Felix Auger Eliassime
Dr.. Nick Kyrgios
e. else
F. no one
The WTA player who wins her first major will be…
a. Paula Badusa
B. Maria Scary
c. Arina Sabalenka
Dr.. Coco Jove
e. else
F. None of the above
Serena Williams will…
a. You will stroll regally through the door you left open, go to Wimbledon at last and run at Margaret Court.
B. Get started with Y Combinator for Women.
c. He played doubles with Venus, appearing on the court for the last time.
Dr.. He declared that she was dedicating herself to becoming the “Serena Williams from Pickleball.”
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This player will finish 2023 in first place:
a. Novak Djokovic
B. Rafa Nadal
c. Nick Kyrgios
Dr.. Carlos Alcaraz
e. Casper Road
F. else
This player will finish 2023 in first place:
a. Caroline Garcia
B. The rising Naomi Osaka
c. Iga Swiatek
Dr.. Anas Jaber
e. else
Coco Gauff will:
a. Major win, full breakthrough.
B. He quit tennis to join a K-pop quartet.
c. progress steadily, play to a reasonable schedule… winning some matches she shouldn’t; She should not lose a little.
Dr.. Take the rumspringa out of tennis and make a splash in the writers room for next season Weird things.
Naomi Osaka—now outside the top 40; Likely to be unseeded at the Australian Open, an event she has won twice – she will:
a. Rediscover her groove and love for the game and return to the first place.
B. Continue to make a big impact, regardless of their results.
c. Announcing her retirement.
Dr.. He continued to have a harder than she expected time returning to being a full-time player.
Of all the experimentation and proposed rules tweaking, this change will actually take effect in 2023:
a. Four game sets
B. Don’t leave on serve
c. Training allowed in the middle of the match
Dr.. A combined WTA/ATP entity
e. none of the above.
In 2023, it will…
a. Surviving just fine, despite some inevitable high-profile retirements.
B. Get a bit of a stumble – if rebranded in F1 style – from the Netflix series breaking point.
c. an end to all ill-conceived policies banning Russians; and withhold ranking points from those tournaments that do so.
Dr.. Adapting to the changing media landscape, fully recognizing that the global appeal of sports and mixed-gender fields are a golden asset these days, and optimizing them as a value proposition.
e. All of the above.